Bonsai

I’ve always wanted to have a collection of bonsai trees. I did have an indoor bonsai tree for a few years. It did quite well and looked nice, but eventually succumbed to cat attack!

Outdoor ones would be better really, but we live on the coast. Normal trees and other plants struggle to survive here due to the winds and the salt, so bonsai trees would probably have a hard time. That doesn’t mean I’m not willing to give it a go. We now have quite a bit of shelter in the garden and I could always build some more shelter if needed.

Morgan bought me a bonsai tree kit for Christmas. This consisted of some ‘mixed bonsai tree seeds’ some compost and some compostable pots. I sowed them, put them in the fridge and then brought them out. Somewhat surprisingly some of them germinated and I now have some very embryonic bonsai trees. I realise it’s unlikely that I’ll keep them going through to maturity but I am going to try.

In the meantime I might see if I can buy some shrubs from a garden nursery that I could use as starter material for some bonsai trees. Maybe some junipers if there is anything suitable. I’ve also got a few shrubs in the garden that I have cut back drastically. If they sprout from the base as I hope they will I’ll see if I can turn these into bonsai as well. So far there is a willow, an escallonia and a field maple that have had this treatment.

There is also a tiny Oak seedling that I’ve put into a pot. And what I think is a hornbeam. The hornbeam is in a standard pot at the moment and I have started wiring it to get some shape. It’s looks to be doing well despite having had quite a root reduction last year.

I also have an old juniper in the garden that was temporarily moved from the front garden when we had that re-turfed and fenced last year. It’s currently in the raised bed looking a little sorry for itself as I’m not sure what to do with it. Maybe there’s bonsai possibilities there.

All of these will of course be projects that will take several years to get to anything that resembles a proper bonsai tree.

I don’t have that much patience so I might have to see if I can buy one or two ‘ready made’ bonsai trees to kick start my collection. These can of course become very expensive very quickly. I don’t want to spend too much as I’m not sure how well they will fare here at the seaside. I have been looking at photos of other people collections with envy though. If only I could afford to buy and keep something like this alive!

Tags: Bonsai